Haunted Distillery Series: Kilbeggan

02-01-2017

By Emily Stockden

Like all distilleries, Kilbeggan - which is incidentally Scotland's oldest distillery - has seen many owners,
generations and workmen and it’s rumoured that some have loved the distillery
so much that they simply cannot leave, even after having long left this life.

Kilbeggan Distillery - Scotland's oldest Distillery

As always, tales of strange noises and blurry videos of
sightings are offered as supporting evidence for these claims. Derek Acorah of
Living TV’s Most Haunted visited Kilbeggan in 2007 and claimed to have met a
Matthias in the can-pit room, as well as John Locke who was apparently angry
about his own death which he felt had come too soon.

John Locke

Matthias is the little-known name of Matthew McManus, the founder of Kilbeggan, while John McManus (his son) was executed in 1798. He also claimed to see a vision of workers gathering to present former owner, John Locke – a frequent ghostly visitor – a gift. In 1866 Kilbeggan’s boiler exploded and the workers presented John Locke with a new one.

Lastly he claims to have met Flo Locke – the last of the Kilbeggan managers before it closed – who recounted her sadness at the distillery falling silent in 1954 and her joy at its reopening in 2007. The spirits were described as satisfied and kindly… And given that Acorah’s visit coincided with the year the distillery re-opened, we’re sure they were also very welcoming ghosts!